Excerpts

Chapter 1 Wasps and Chocolate "Smile, please!" said Daisy as she pressed the button and a bright flash lit up the bathroom. Her dad's foam-covered face froze in the viewfinder, razor held in midair and eyebrows raised in surprise. "Hey!" he protested, scraping another pathway through the foam. "If I'd known we were doing a photo shoot, I'd have dressed up for the occassion." Daisy reversed into the bedroom, fell backward onto the double bed, and took an action shot of the ceiling on her way down. "Hey!" said Mom, lifting her coffee cup out of harm's way. "Be careful where you're bouncing, missy!" "Sorry," said Daisy. "But a good photographer has to be able to take photos on the move." (She had read this in a magazine at the dentist's, so she knew it was true.) "Like the new camera, then?" asked Dad, toweling his face dry. "It's the best birthday present ever," said Daisy. She turned around to take a shot of her mom drinking her coffee. "Well, don't waste the film," said Mom as she flicked through her magazine. "I'm not sure the world is ready for pictures of your dad first thing in the morning." "Thousands would disagree," said Dad. "Don't worry," said Daisy. "It's digital. See? You can just delete it if you don't like it." She pressed a button, and the picture dissolved away to nothing. "There," she said. "All gone!" Daisy's mom looked at the clock, then dropped her magazine and sprang out of bed. "Gone is where we all should be. It's a quarter past eight already!" Daisy put her camera back on the shelf and hoped she wouldn't be late for school again. Miss Frink had suggested setting her alarm clock ten minutes earlier, but this just meant that she had more time to do interesting things before she left the house. She picked up the bottle of Strawberry Surprise (birthday perfume from Grandma) and squirted some under her chin. It reminded her of the delicious chewy red candy she liked so much, so she gave herself another quick blast. Then she swung her backpack over her shoulder, jumped down the stairs three at a time, and ambled into the kitchen. "P.U.," said Dad. "What's that smell?" "It's my perfume," replied Daisy. "Strawberry Surprise." "Surprise is right," said Dad, wrinkling up his nose. "Come on, Daisy," said Mom. "Stop dawdling and get a move on. You know what Miss Frink said about you being late." "Don't worry, Mom," said Daisy, kissing her on the cheek and skipping out of the back door. "Daisy Dawson is on her way!" Daisy wandered down the lane, listening to the bees buzz and the swallows sing. Apart from a few bumpy white clouds here and there, the sky was clean and empty. With the sun warming her face, Daisy leaned on the gate and gazed at the old tumbledown barn. "Boom!" she called. "I've brought you some breakfast!" There was a scrabbling sound from inside the barn, and a large bloodhound poked its head through a hole in the wall. "Morning, Daisy," he said. "You're bright and early." "Well I was," replied Daisy as Boom lumbered toward her. "But I got involved in a photo shoot, so . . ." It was only a few weeks since Daisy's encounter with the magical yellow butterfly, but she was already so used to talking to animals that it didn't seem the least bit strange to her. In fact, it would have seemed stranger if she'd suddenly discovered she couldn't talk to them. "A photo shoot?" asked Boom. "What's that?" "I got a new camera for my birthday, and I've been taking photos with it," s Excerpted from Daisy Dawson and the Secret Pond by Steve Voake All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.